Somehow we missed this one last week.
CityLab reports that traffic congestion cost Los Angeles $19.2 billion — yes, with a b — in 2016. Which works out to an average cost of $2,828 per driver.
So sure.
Let’s just follow the lead of LA’s traffic safety deniers and do nothing to provide viable alternatives to driving, while dumping tens of thousands of new cars on the city streets every year.
That will somehow magically make everything better.
Right?
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Another great piece from Peter Flax, as he builds an Anti-Bike-Crank Hall of Fame based on the 10 stupidest things people have said about cyclists.
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Local
A UCLA professor will take part in a three-week, 1,000-mile bike ride along the California coast to talk climate change.
Curbed looks at how Los Angeles walking advocate Jessica Meaney gets around. Hint: It’s not by driving.
It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from LA Bike Dad, who examines whether you should consider getting a bakfiets, aka cargo bike. To answer the unasked question, you pronounce bakfiets like what I have to wipe off after the Corgi goes out in the rain, along with her front fiets.
State
LimeBike is bringing their dockless bikeshare to San Diego, undoubtedly to the chagrin of the beachfront bike rental owners who just got the city’s bikeshare docks removed from near their stores. Thanks to Frank Lehnerz for the heads-up.
Streetsblog talks with a bike-riding San Francisco firefighter about Vision Zero and his department’s windshield perspective.
A Marin man has been ordered to stand trial on four felony hit-and-run charges for ramming four cyclists in last year’s Jensie Gran Fondo, apparently intentionally. Although he should also face charges of assault with a deadly weapon, with potential jail time of a lot more than just five years.
National
Despite improvements in automotive safety, US traffic deaths remained over 40,000 for the second year in a row.
Bicycling lists the commuter cycling gear you need this year. Apparently oblivious to the fact that many people seem to get to and from work just fine without any of it.
Seattle proves that it is in fact possible to add jobs while dramatically cutting traffic. Your move, Los Angeles.
If Utah adopts a version of the Idaho Stop law, it will be just the third state in the US to allow bicyclists to treat stop signs as yields. Which means there’s just 47 more to go.
Colorado lawmakers block an attempt to ban red light and speed cameras in the state. Speed cameras are currently illegal in California, while red light cameras are prohibited in Los Angeles. Which makes the Rocky Mountain State smarter, and safer, than either one of them.
Laredo TX opened a new bike and ride plaza to allow people to safely store their bicycles when they take the bus.
Kansas and Missouri are working to have sections of the famed Route 66 designated as a US Bicycle Route.
A Memphis newspaper looks at the city’s plans to build out their existing bicycle network, six year’s after they were named America’s most improved bike city.
People in Charlotte NC love the dockless bikeshares that have appeared in the city under a trial program. Or hate them.
International
Your next bike mechanic could have an international certification.
The Economist says to improve cities, we need to focus on the 95% of the time when cars aren’t being used.
British Columbia bicyclists cheer plans to replace an 81-year old bridge, which has a shared bike and pedestrian lane so narrow that bikes coming from opposite directions can’t pass one another.
A travel writer for the Washington Post rides end-to-end across Britain.
Caught on video: A British van driver inexplicably decides to hover next to a pair of bicyclists, less than an arm’s distance away.
A New Zealand man lost 220 pounds after his doctor gave him a bicycle; now he fixes bikes and gives them away to encourage others to ride. If more doctors would prescribe bicycling to their patients, we might have a much healthier and happy population.
Indian cyclists are giving up their desk jobs to open high-end bike shops.
Competitive Cycling
Turns out The Big Lebowski helped inspire ex-Tour de France winner Floyd Landis’ unlikely comeback as a purveyor of fine medical dope products.
A Morgan Hill columnist is getting hyped for the city’s turn to host a stage of the Amgen Tour of California.
No, pro cyclists are not welcoming Chris Froome back with open arms while a doping cloud hangs over his head, despite what he says.
Finally…
Upcycling classic bicycles is one thing; buying a second-hand Penny Farthing is another. Apparently, all the good bikes under three grand are on the radar.
And forget motor doping, mountain ebike racing will now be a thing.
